


Sleep/wake/live/repeat

by Skoll



Category: The Avengers (2012)
Genre: Because Tony is ridiculous, Best Friends, Bruce somehow gets sucked into Tony's sleeping schedule, Friendship, Gen, Not crack fic, Science Bros, Science sleepovers, Tony maintains that they do this for science, Which doesn't really work for anyone but Tony
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-03-07
Updated: 2013-03-07
Packaged: 2017-12-04 13:13:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 682
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/711142
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skoll/pseuds/Skoll
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The best thing about waking up slumped over his desk in the lab, these days, is not doing it alone.</p><p>(Or: That fic where Bruce Banner and Tony Stark have a bi-weekly day where they work until the crack of dawn, sleep in the lab, and then go to breakfast together.  Because science bros make me happy, Bruce Banner deserves every small kindness he can be given, and apparently I haven't had my fill yet of writing domestic moments happening in Tony's lab.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sleep/wake/live/repeat

**Author's Note:**

> Sadly, this story was vaguely inspired by a myriad of true moments from my life. My roommate and I do this frighteningly often.
> 
> Anyone who reads, enjoy.

The best thing about waking up slumped over his desk in the lab, these days, is not doing it alone.

Tony stretches his arms over his head in one of those really good, spine-cracking stretches, and tries to gauge what time it is. The light quality in here isn't exactly conducive to keeping track of time—and intentionally so—but Tony's getting practiced at guessing now, and today his best estimate is that it's some time shortly after noon.

It's when he's in the middle of standing up to get his coffee mug—his new policy of keeping his mug far from his computers does mean far fewer incidences of mechanical-death-due-to-coffee-flooding when Tony actually passes out onto the nearest solid surface, but also makes it much harder for Tony have an uninterrupted intake of caffeine—anyway. It's in the middle of standing up that he first notices that Bruce also spent the night in the lab.

Admittedly, Bruce made it to the small cot he's taken to keeping on his side of the lab, but considering he's sleeping with what looks like pages of research draped over his face, Tony doesn't think that makes him any less of a workaholic. Actually, it's a little funny; every breath Bruce lets out ruffles the pages over his face, not enough to displace them but enough to have them ripple with every inhale.

Tony, because he is a considerate human being, walks over as quietly as he can and picks the pages up from Bruce's face, setting them back in order and putting them down on Bruce's desk. Only then, when waking the other man doesn't have any risk of damage to his research involved, does Tony reach down to shake Banner, lightly.

Bruce goes from fully asleep to awake almost instantly, probably remnants of that whole spending years running from the government phase. “Hey,” Tony says, keeping his voice marginally quieter than normal. “It's already past noon, and I know how much you bitch about your sleep schedule being thrown off when you sleep in. I'm gonna go forage for something edible.” With all the Avengers in residence at the tower, there's only about a fifty-fifty shot that there's any food left in the house, but whatever. This is why whatever merciful god might be out there created take-out.

Now that it's clear there's no immediate danger here, Bruce's eyes flutter back shut. “We have to stop doing this,” he informs Tony tiredly.

Tony frowns and quirks an eyebrow. “What, breakfast?” He didn't think there was anything that objectionable about breakfast. Well. So long as Tony isn't cooking it himself, he didn't think there was anything objectionable about it.

“No,” Bruce says, and opens his eyes again, “this thing where we mutually overwork and then only sleep when we can't stay awake any longer. There is so much science that says that's unhealthy.” Bruce visibly thinks back over what he's just said and then asks, “Did I just say 'so much science'? I think you're rubbing off on me.”

Oh, well, so long as it's nothing serious. “I'll rub off on you any day, baby,” Tony says, with a deliberately over the top wink, and then dodges adroitly out of the way when Banner lifts a hand to smack him. “Seriously, though. Last night I increased the efficiency of the repulsors in the suit by thirteen percent, and possibly thought of something that could revolutionize the efforts to end world hunger. I mean, possibly not that last, I'd have to check back over my calculations with actual coffee in my bloodstream, but still. We do this for science, Bruce.”

“I hope science appreciates it,” Bruce says, and Tony grins.

“So I'm correctly interpreting that to mean we'll be right back here in three days, give or take, doing the same song and dance?” Tony asks. Honestly he doesn't even need to ask. Their bi-weekly science sleepovers are possibly the highlights of Tony's week.

Bruce just smiles at Tony, expression still tired but clearly fond nevertheless, and says, “Come on, Tony. You promised me breakfast.”


End file.
